Chicago, Ill. - The University of Illinois at Chicago women's basketball team was prepared to put Chicago State out of its misery as the Flames held a 69-54 lead over the Cougars with 3:19 left in the contest.

Chicago State, however, was not going to go away without a fight as the Cougars went on a 14-0 run to narrow the gap to 69-68 with 56 seconds left in the game.

UIC freshman Chrissy Dizon, however, stepped up like a poised veteran and calmly nailed a three-pointer with 26 seconds left in the contest to put the game out of reach for the Cougars and give the Flames the 72-71 non-conference victory at the Jacoby-Dickens Center on Thursday night.

The trey by Dizon was the only basket of the night for The Latin School graduate.

"Chrissy is one of the best shooters that we have," UIC head coach Lisa Ryckbosch said. "That's a tough kid.

"I'm not at all surprised that she hit it, but she was ready, cocked and aggressive to be able to take it."

With the victory, UIC improves to 6-3 on the season, while Chicago State falls to 1-6 on the campaign.

"I have to be pleased with the way we hung in there and withstood (the rally)," Ryckbosch said.

Ryckbosch lauded the efforts of Dizon, along with forwards Chastity Quinn and Tina Thompson. Quinn finished the contest with four points and seven rebounds, while Thompson added seven points from the field on 3-of-4 shooting.

"We do not win this game without the performances of those three players," Ryckbosch said.

Senior center Zsuzsa Tarnai recorded the second double-double of her career as the Budapest, Hungary native scored 16 points, including a pair of three-pointers, and hauled in 10 rebounds for the Flames.

In the opening half, Chicago State rolled to a 37-33 lead, heading into the intermission as reserve guard Bridgette Kelly scored 14 points, including four three pointers. Kelly finished with a game-high 23 points for the Cougars.

UIC, however, took control early on the second half as the Flames went on a 17-5 run, led by eight points from Tarnai to take a 50-42 lead over the Cougars.

UIC extended its lead to 67-51, following a lay-up by Chambers with four minutes left in the contest.

Chicago State began its 14-0 run, led by six points from Kelly as the Cougars drew within 69-68 with 56 seconds left in the contest, setting the stage for Dizon's heroics.